Google’s Take on Privacy

The Alphabet Inc. company, the parent company of Google, announced that it plans to stop investing and using individualized ad tracking technologies starting in 2022. Due to its huge dominance in online advertising and search engine, the announcement will certainly create a tremendous impact on the industry, pushing the industry away from individualized ad tracking.

The way how Google uses individualized ad tracking is to collect information, called cookies, about users from multiple websites. Based on the cookies, Google analyzes users' interests and displays relevant ads across various locations, such as the available spaces on websites and apps. According to the announcement, Google is testing new technologies, called "Privacy Sandbox," to replace individualized ad tracking. Rather than collecting individual cookies, "Privacy Sandbox" groups users with similar interests to target ads based on browsing habits, so individual identity and information cannot be traced.

The surging concerns people have about their privacy emerge as people become more aware of targeted ad tracking. By looking at the data, it is inevitable for us to realize the extent of how tech giants like Google, Facebook, etc., are constantly taking advantage of us and letting strangers share and sell our data without limitations. Privacy is essentially a fundamental human right. Google's move on promoting privacy is a game-changer both in the industry and amongst users ourselves. We will see how Google implements its new technologies and influences the industry in the near future.

References:

• https://wsj.com/article1
• https://wsj.com/article2
• https://wsj.com/article3
• https://emarketer.com/content

By Jiaxuan (Jayson) Xu